Foldable tricycles are well known products in the market. Nevertheless, attempts to create a tricycle having relatively small overall dimensions while folded have failed.
CN Pat. App. No. 201510959940 discloses “a foldable baby carriage which comprises a carriage body. A first back chair capable of being overturned is connected to the carriage body in a pivoted mode. The foldable baby carriage further comprises a carriage handle capable of being overturned, and the carriage handle comprises a carriage handle body and a casing pipe arranged below the carriage handle body. A frame pipe is arranged on the upper portion of a front wheel frame and connected with the casing pipe in a pivoted mode. The frame pipe is provided with a fixing shaft, and the free end of the casing piece abuts against the fixing shaft. By means of the foldable carriage handle, a foldable rear wheel device and the pivoted connecting mode of the first back chair, the baby carriage can be folded and retracted to a large degree, the size is reduced, and transportation and carrying are facilitated.”
CN Pat. App. No. 201610035426 discloses “a foldable tricycle for children and a folding method of the foldable tricycle. The foldable tricycle for children comprises a frame and a handlebar arranged in the front of the frame, wherein the frame comprises a head tube arranged on the handlebar in a sleeving manner, an upper connecting rod assembly rotationally connected onto the head tube, a lower connecting rod assembly rotationally connected onto the head tube, a push rod assembly connected in the rear of the upper connecting rod assembly and the lower connecting rod assembly and a support rod which is rotationally connected between the upper connecting rod assembly and the lower connecting rod assembly and located in front of the push rod assembly, and the upper connecting rod assembly, the head tube, the lower connecting rod assembly and the support rod form a four-bar link mechanism; the push rod assembly is rotationally connected with the upper connecting rod assembly and is fixedly connected with or separated from the lower connecting rod assembly through a locking device; during folding, the locking device is unlocked firstly, then the push rod assembly is lifted upwards to be separated from the lower connecting rod assembly and overturned forwards, so that the push rod assembly, the handlebar, the upper connecting rod assembly and the lower connecting rod assembly are stacked sequentially from top to bottom, and size is small after folding.”
CN Pat. App. No. 201420370599 discloses “a folding type child bicycle which is characterized by comprising a bicycle body. The bicycle body is composed of handlebars, a frame and a saddle. The frame is provided with a folding mechanism, a front wheel and a rear wheel, wherein the front wheel and the rear wheel are connected to the front portion and the rear portion of the frame. The folding mechanism comprises a front frame, locking parts, an upper supporting part and a rear frame. One end of the front frame is connected to the front of the bicycle body so that the handlebars, the front wheel and the rear portion of the bicycle body can be connected into one. The locking end of the front frame is movably connected to the locking end of the upper supporting part and the locking end of the rear frame through the locking parts. The other end of the rear frame is connected to the rear wheel. The other end of the upper supporting part is connected to the frame. The folding type child bicycle is simple in structure, convenient to use and capable of being widely applied to various occasions.”
JP Pat. App. No. 20040303299 discloses “a tricycle which is excellent in strength and rigidity in a developed service condition and easily folded in a non-service condition”. “A vehicle body frame has a front frame and a rear frame, and a rear end of the front frame and a front end of the rear frame are pivotably connected to each other by one pivotably connecting shaft in a switching manner between a developed service condition and a ridge-shaped folding, non-service condition. A seat part is pivotably attached to the front frame. The seat part is provided with a locking mechanism engaged with the rear frame and held in the developed service condition. The front end of the rear frame extends to the front frame over the pivotably connecting shaft, and has an abutted part for maintaining development which is abutted on a top face of the rear end of the front frame in the developed service condition.”
U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/053,804 discloses “a foldable tricycle that transitions between a use orientation, and a transport or storage orientation. The tricycle has a frame including a first end and a second end of the frame, a fork rotatably connected adjacent the first end of the frame, a front wheel rotatably connected to the fork, and a handlebar assembly coupled to the fork to allow for steering of the fork. The tricycle also has first and second rear wheels adjacent the second end of the frame in the use position. The rear wheels are positioned a first distance from a longitudinal axis of the frame in the use position. The first and second wheels can be transitioned to a storage position adjacent the first end of the frame and at a second distance from the longitudinal axis of the frame in the storage position, wherein the first distance from the frame is greater than the second distance from the frame. The tricycle may also have a folding assembly pivotably coupled to the second end of the frame at a first pivot location. As such, the first and second rear wheels may be connected to the folding assembly to simultaneously transition the first and second rear wheels to a storage position with the folding assembly.”
JP Pat. App. No. 20120238377 discloses “the folding tricycle is constructed such that a vehicle body including a main frame, a front frame, and a rear frame is foldable by quadrangle linking, and bendable by joint parts located near a first folding shaft bisected in a vehicle body width direction for connecting the front end of the main frame to the connection cylindrical part of the front frame, and a manual pressing rod and an operation handle are interlocked with each other by connection rods inserted into the main frame. The tricycle includes a lock releasing operation member extended upward along the manual pressing rod from the pulling-up operation end side of a lock lever detachably engaged with a lock plate rotated integrally with the rear frame around a second folding shaft in the vehicle width direction to lock the folded state or the developed state of the vehicle body.
U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/658,620 discloses “a foldable tricycle includes a center frame, a front frame to which a front wheel is rotatably attached, a rear frame to which two rear wheels are rotatably attached, and a four-bar link including a first bar that is integrated with the front frame, a second bar that is integrated with the center frame, a third bar that is integrated with the rear frame, and a fourth bar. The fourth bar has a shape of plates and covers the other bars while the link operates between an unfolded position and a folded position. Lockers that lock the link in either the unfolded position or the folded position are provided and include a pin, two recesses that receives the pin, and a tension spring that presses the pin into the recesses. A semi-circle guide guides the pin between the two positions and also covers the third bar.”
U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/877,251 discloses “a battery powered motor vehicle for transporting a rider in a standing position can be steered by either selective distribution of the rider's weight, or alternative by turning a steering console. By attaching a cargo rack, the battery powered motor vehicle can be converted to a hand truck for transporting cargo. In the hand truck mode, the battery powered motor vehicle can either be powered wherein the vehicle moves in reverse, or manually pushed wherein the vehicle is in a neutral state.”
PCT App. No. FI2002/001013 discloses “an apparatus and a method for collapsing a means of transport from running position into storage position or vice versa. Collapsing is preferably performed using an electric motor or by hand, the mutual movements of the front part frame, the rear part frame and the reversible rod being preferably synchronized using cogged belt pulleys and the reversible rod. Owing to synchronization, the centre of gravity of the transport means is stable and remains within an area defined by the wheels during the entire collapsing operation, so that collapsing takes place completely without any external support.”
PCT App. No. SE2003/000692 discloses “an arrangement used as a shopping trolley in the folded position and for personal transport and baggage transport in the unfolded position. It is equipped with a load carrier capable of being fitted with various load surfaces and load volumes. Without supplementary drive arrangement, it is used the unfolded position. A control in the platform releases locks in the joints, in with which the vehicle adopts a rest position a as a scooter in form of a lever on conjunction halfway between the folded and unfolded positions. Transformation between the two forms of use takes place as a single operation. The vehicle is used for short personal transport and goods transport journeys in city centers. When folded, it can be stored in the home and transported on a train/bus or in the luggage compartment of a motor car.”
The present disclosure seeks to overcome certain of the limitations and other drawbacks of the above applications and prior art, and to provide new features not heretofore available. A full discussion of the features and advantages of the present disclosure is deferred to the following detailed description, which proceeds with reference to the accompanying drawings.